Would YOU feed whole linseed un-cooked?

Spyda

Spyda

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These days I buy cooked full fat linseed meal but in the 'olden days' used to buy whole linseed and boil it into a gloop. Many a happy day spent plastering my Mum's cooker top in linseed goo :D

Just found this article which says it is absolutely fine to feed completely unprocessed, uncooked whole linseed (although they agree better digestion is achieved by grinding it in a coffee grinder first). http://www.understanding-horse-nutrition.com/flax-seed.html

Soooo, was I really mislead for all those years that I believed it was unthinkable to feed whole linseed uncooked. Did I wasted all those years soaking and cooking??? (And then scrubbing the cooker top clean???)

And ultimately, am I now wasting money buying cooked linseed meal when I could buy whole seed a lot cheaper????? *Scratches head*

Just curious as to whether others on here feed linseed uncooked?
 
I wouldn't, why risk it? It is common for those in the US to feed unsoaked beet shreds, and I wouldn't do that either!

Apart from anything else, where are the links to these studies mentioned, and what are the qualifications of the person who has written this piece?

There are some things we can do to safeguard our horses health, and some things that we just can't prevent. So to me it makes sense to do all I can to prevent any problems, even if they might be very unlikely.
 
I understood that linseed had to be cooked as it contains cyanide and cooking releases it! I would say whole linseed would pass straight through the gut - the seeds are hard things.

I buy micronised - it's inexpensive
 
I've never used it but I always understood that linseed contains cyanide and that you boiled it up to crack it and then fed just the scraped off resulting jelly. However, our cousins on the other side of Atlantic do indeed crunch raw linseed in a coffee grinder and feed it dry. I presume that if their horses haven't died of it yet, it must be ok.
 
Clodagh said:
I fed it to my hunter, she had a baileys mug full twice a day, she looked great on it.
Click to expand...

Out of interest, was is whole uncooked seeds or did you grind them up before adding to her feed? Just wondered if the whole seeds get masticated and digsted sufficiently because they are quite small and hard.

I've looked, cooked full fat linseed meal is CHEAPER by the 20kg bag than whole linseed. Looks like I wont be switching then!
 
I wouldn't, but agree I doubt its that harmful as you can buy it in raw form for humans to eat raw

However that said 25kg of Micronised was only £25 and lasted for ages - so easier to feed that anyway!
 
I have heard of people feeding uncooked linseed successfully (mainly people in France etc who cannot get hold of the micronised stuff) but those people have ground it in a coffee grinder first.

I don't know of anyone who feeds it whole though.
 
I just fed it whole, it was a couple of years ago and I did loads of research into it first. She didn't die (!) and had a lovely shiney coat and looked very well. I got it from a company that had it in for sampling, so was cheap.
 
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